Americans using TikTok say they experience exposures to inaccurate or misleading information, and that the platform’s algorithm “almost exclusively” presents content that aligns with their views on political and social issues.
Category: Misinformation 101
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Are you in a filter bubble or an echo chamber?
It’s time to burst the (filter) bubble! 🫧
The terms “filter bubble” and “echo chamber” are often used interchangeably, but they are not the same.
Both terms refer to the tendency for your social media feed to show you things that you already like or agree with, instead of things that challenge your existing beliefs (3-7). We get a lot of our information from social media, so being in an isolated information space can make opinions more extreme (4,5) and lower resistance to misinformation (5).
Read on to learn what these terms really mean, and how prevalent they are.
Sources- Content-based filtering algorithm in social media | Wasit Journal of Computer and Mathematics Science | March 2023
- Social Media Algorithms: Why You See What You See | Georgetown Law Technology Review | December 2017
- Echo Chambers, Filter Bubbles, and Polarisation: a Literature Review | Oxford University | 2022
- Examining the interactive effects of the filter bubble and the echo chamber on radicalization | Journal of Experimental Criminology | August 2021
- The Psychology of Misinformation | Cambridge University Press | March 2024
- It’s Not the Technology, Stupid: How the ‘Echo Chamber’ and ‘Filter Bubble’ Metaphors Have Failed Us | Queensland University of Technology | July 2019
- Echo Chamber? What Echo Chamber? Reviewing the Evidence | Queensland University of Technology | September 2017
- Through the Newsfeed Glass: Rethinking Filter Bubbles and Echo Chambers | Philosophy & Technology | March 2022
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The terms "filter bubble" and "echo chamber" are often used interchangeably, but they are not the same. We explain the differences between these two terms here scienceupfirst.com/misinformati… #ScienceUpFirst
— ScienceUpFirst (@scienceupfirst.bsky.social) February 27, 2025 at 12:41 PM
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Algorithm 101
We know, it is impossible to completely escape algorithms. But what we can do is understand how they work and, above all, pay attention to how we interact with them and how they shape your online experience.
Resources
Misinformer Tactic: Stirring Up Emotions | ScienceUpFirst
Falsehood flies, and the truth comes limping after it | ScienceUpFirst
Misinformer Tactic: Astroturfing | ScienceUpFirst
Sources- Algorithm Definition & Meaning | Merriam-Webster
- Social Media Algorithms: Why You See What You See | Georgetown Law Technology Review | December 2017
- Are You Really in Control of What You See Online, or Are Algorithms Controlling It for You? | Medium | September 2024
- Content-based filtering algorithm in social media | Wasit Journal of Computer and Mathematics Science | March 2023
- Social Media Algorithm 2025 Guide For Every Platform | StoryChief Insights
- 2024 Social Media Algorithms: A Guide for All Networks | Hootsuite | March 2024
- How Social Media Algorithms Control What You See (And How to Take Control) | by Vignesh | Medium | October 2024
- Auditing Entertainment Traps on YouTube: How Do Recommendation Algorithms Pull Users Away from News | Political Communication | April 2024
- Unveiling The Dark Side Of Social Media Algorithms – Harmful Effects On Mental Health | Brainz Magazine | October 2023
- Doomscrolling: What It Is & How to Stop | Choosing Therapy | March 2024
- Cross-national evidence of a negativity bias in psychophysiological reactions to news | PNAS | September 2019
- Why we focus on the bad stuff | ScienceUpFirst | May 2023
- Reliance on emotion promotes belief in fake news | Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications | Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications | October 2020
- Anger, Fear, and Echo Chambers: The Emotional Basis for Online Behavior | SAGE Journals | April 2019
- The fingerprints of misinformation: how deceptive content differs from reliable sources in terms of cognitive effort and appeal to emotions | Humanities and Social Sciences Communications | May 2022
- Social media networks, fake news, and polarization | European Journal of Political Economy | January 2023
- Twitter Bots Are a Major Source of Climate Disinformation | Scientific American | January 2021
- An analysis of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine misinformation and fear mongering on Twitter | Public Health | August 2021
- From news disengagement to fake news engagement: Examining the role of news-finds-me perceptions in vulnerability to fake news through third-person perception | Computers in Human Behavior | January 2025
- Feed me: 4 ways to take control of social media algorithms and get the content you actually want | The Conversation | May 2023
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What’s an algorithm? We explain the mechanics, advantages and disadvantages of algorithms here. We also get into how they shape your online experience. 👉https://scienceupfirst.com/misinformation-101/algorithm-101/ Do you have questions about algorithms? Tell us in the comments! #ScienceUpFirst
— ScienceUpFirst (@scienceupfirst.bsky.social) February 26, 2025 at 10:15 AM
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Exposure to detectable inaccuracies makes children more diligent fact-checkers of novel claims
Children can benefit from exposures to misinformation as it leads to increased fact-checking and evidence-seeking online activities. Authors conclude that “sanitizing children’s informational environments may inadvertently dampen their natural scepticism.”
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How rational inference about authority debunking can curtail, sustain, or spread belief polarization
This study provides insights into when and how debunking fails to reduce polarization, and where it might instead have little to no effect, or actually increase polarization. Debunking has the greatest chance for success if it comes from organizations with an established unbiased, non-partisan, reputation, known for being committed to accuracy.
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Political polarization and health
Political polarization can be related to extreme positions on social issues (“ideological”) or to showing affection for one’s group of belonging and hatred towards the opposing group (“affective”). This research on US populations shows how polarization can have significant harms on the health and well-being of individuals and collectives.
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Fact check on fact-checkers
Not to get all “meta” but we need a fact check on fact checkers ✅
In an announcement made on January 7th, Meta CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, announced an end to fact-checking across their platform. In a video he stated that fact-checkers had “destroyed more trust than they have created”, but is there evidence to support this?
Not at all! On the contrary, there is measurable evidence that fact-checkers work! Fact-checking reduces the belief in and spread of misinformation, even among those who don’t trust the fact-checkers (1-7).
Removal of these policies can cause harm, so now more than ever it’s good to up our critical thinking game – here are 2 things to remember:
- Pause to think and ask yourself “Is this true?” before sharing. This is a simple proven way of slowing the spread of misinformation (8-12).
- Fact check for yourself, it’s easier than you think! Confirm the credibility of a source by searching through credible sources in another tab and comparing it to the original source. Fact-checkers call this “lateral reading” (13-19).
Fact-checking isn’t just for experts – it’s skills we can all use to evaluate claims and spot misinformation.
Sources- Warning labels from fact checkers work — even if you don’t trust them | MIT Sloan | September 2024
- Fact-checker warning labels are effective even for those who distrust fact-checkers | Nature Human Behaviour | September 2024
- The global effectiveness of fact-checking: Evidence from simultaneous experiments in Argentina, Nigeria, South Africa, and the United Kingdom | PNAS | September 2021
- Misinformation warning labels are widely effective: A review of warning effects and their moderating features | Current Opinion in Psychology | December 2023
- Political Misinformation and Factual Corrections on the Facebook News Feed: Experimental Evidence | The Journal of Politics | July 2022
- Cleaning Up Social Media: The Effect of Warning Labels on Likelihood of Sharing False News on Facebook | Policy & Internet | July 2019
- Journalistic interventions matter: Understanding how Americans perceive fact-checking labels | HKS Misinformation Review | April 2024
- Fighting misinformation: Why pausing before you share really works! | MediaSmarts | April 2022
- Accuracy prompts are a replicable and generalizable approach for reducing the spread of misinformation | Nature Communications | April 2022
- Understanding and combatting misinformation across 16 countries on six continents | Nature Human Behaviour | June 2023
- Shifting attention to accuracy can reduce misinformation online | Nature | March 2021
- Fighting COVID-19 Misinformation on Social Media: Experimental Evidence for a Scalable Accuracy-Nudge Intervention | Association for Psychological Science | June 2020
- What is lateral reading?
- Expand your view with lateral reading
- Lateral Reading and SIFT – Online Research | Libraries Central Michigan University | December 2024
- Lateral Reading: Reading Less and Learning More When Evaluating Digital Information | Teachers College Record | November 2019
- Teaching lateral reading: Interventions to help people read like fact checkers | Current Opinion in Psychology | February 2024
- Lateral reading on the open Internet: A district-wide field study in high school government classes | APA PsycNet Direct | July 2022
- Teaching lateral reading: Interventions to help people read like fact checkers | Current Opinion in Psychology | February 2024
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Fact-checking isn't just for experts – it's a skill everyone can use to evaluate claims and spot misinformation.
— ScienceUpFirst | LaScienced'Abord (@ScienceUpFirst) January 30, 2025
Read here to find out more 👉https://t.co/UMKvjBynYN#ScienceUpFirst pic.twitter.com/i6uDUgCLv6View our original Instagram Post!
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“You started working out to get a flat stomach and a fat a$$”: A content analysis of fitspiration videos on TikTok
The majority of fitspiration videos on Tiktok contain misleading/harmful diet and exercise information and are posted by fitness influencers. Male bodies are commonly presented with a muscular ideal and female bodies with a thin and fit ideal.
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Designing misinformation interventions for all: Perspectives from AAPI, Black, Latino, and Native American community leaders on misinformation educational effort
This research uses focus groups from non-profit organizations to examine misinformation types, impacts, and intervention strategies in Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI), Black, Latino, and Indigenous communities. It illustrates how educational strategies can be more effective by incorporating diverse media environments and by understanding and acknowledging the roots of mistrust in institutions and organizations.
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Politically biased moderation drives echo chamber formation: An analysis of user-driven content removals on Reddit
Discussion moderators on Reddit show political bias in content removal. This finding shows that in addition to platform creators and algorithms, content moderators can play a role in the creation and maintenance of social media echo chambers.
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Misinformer Tactics: Home Alone Edition
It’s the holiday season and that means one thing to us at ScienceUpFirst, Home Alone!
We love this movie and this year we thought it would be fun to pair parts of the film with our Misinformer Tactics. You can find all these tactics and more on our website!
Some are a bit of a stretch…but we gotta let loose at the end of the year right? 😂
Share our original Tweet!
It’s the holiday season and here at ScienceUpFirst it makes us think about “Home Alone”.
— ScienceUpFirst | LaScienced'Abord (@ScienceUpFirst) December 11, 2024
This year, we thought it would be fun to match certain scenes from that classic movie with certain misinformation tactics.
See them all here! 👉https://t.co/My3IG6W95s#ScienceUpFirst pic.twitter.com/BgvEtUeakeView our original Instagram Post!
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Softly empowering a prosocial expert in the family: lasting effects of a counter-misinformation intervention in an informational autocracy
Prosocial-focused interventions – which highlight the social implications of individual actions on families and communities – showed greater discernment in misinformation detection.